Manhattan Explosion Leaves Dozens Injured

U.S. & LATIN AMERICA

NEW YORK -- At least 30 people were injured, 10 of them seriously, in an explosion Thursday at an eight-story building in lower Manhattan. Officials said there were no reports of fatalities.

Several people in the area said they immediately thought of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York City when they were shaken by Thursday's blast, but authorities were quick to say there was no sign of terrorism involved. Fire officials said it appeared the explosion occurred after an accidental fire in the basement of the building set off drums of acetone that were stored there.

"At the moment, there's absolutely no reason to think that this is anything other than a tragic accident," Mayor Michael Bloomberg told reporters, "and we hope that there is no loss of life."

Initial reports put the number of injured at 20 to 50 people. But a lieutenant with the Fire Department later put the number of injured at 32. "It's just too early to tell if they will all make it," Bloomberg said.

Bloomberg said the 80-year-old building appeared to be structurally sound, although there were some loose panels and loose terra cotta tiles on the facade. As a precaution, the buildings on both sides of the damaged building were evacuated.

Officials said that as far they knew, they had accounted for all the people who were in the building at the time of the blast.

Bloomberg and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta, who spoke with reporters at a firehouse near the building, said the cause of the fire is under investigation. But they said theblast apparently was caused by several 50-gallon drums of acetone that exploded.

The mayor and the fire commissioner said the acetone had been delivered Wednesday and was stored in the basement. They did not say whom the chemicals belonged to, but other officials at the scene said they belonged to Kaltech, a company that makes signs and has offices in the building. Those officials also said the fire might have started with plumbers working on a boiler in the basement.

Officials repeatedly steered reporters from the notion that the explosion was in any way related to terrorism.

"There are no suspicious tenants in the building. It all points to a very serious accident," Scoppetta said. David Santiago, 41, who owns a hardware store a couple of doors from the site of the explosion, said: "I heard a small rumble. Our windows started to shake -- 9-11 came to my mind right away."